Chamber director introduced

Ted Ayala, new executive director of the Montrose Verdugo City Chamber of Commerce, was introduced Tuesday, Feb. 23 to the Glendale City Council. Ayala said he was not a local resident but was familiar with the community. “My mother worked at Vons Market,” he said.

Montrose, the city’s official old town, celebrated its 97th birthday on Feb. 21.

Board approves
home expansion

La Crescenta architect Mike Geragos found himself on the other side of the table Thursday in presenting a local case to the Design Review Board 1.

Geragos, a member of the city’s other design review board, presented the case for the expansion of a home at 3633 Urquidez. The home, built in 1949, is an 849 square foot single-family residence that the owner wants to expand by 1,038 square feet. The project would also expand and make code compliant an existing garage.

Planning assistant Gevorge Nazarian said the remodel would also change the style of the home from ranch to Spanish Colonial Revival.

Geragos, architect of the project, said the existing home is only minimally ranch style, and generally has the support of neighbors. Opposition was expressed by the homeowners association in a letter, calling the proposed new design incompatible.

No one spoke at the hearing except for Geragos and owner Mohammed Dar. The board approved the project, calling for use of quality tiles and submission of a landscaping plan with drought resistant plants.

No fooling,
Census approaches

April 1 will be more than a day to come up with practical jokes to annoy your family and friends this year.

It is the officially designated Census Day, on which forms are supposed to be returned accounting for all residents of the U.S.

The forms that are not returned are followed up by census takers as the nation strives for what will probably never happen: a full count.

The importance of the census for governments is to establish local entitlement for grant programs and to direct the drawing of electoral distinct lines.

The City Council on Feb. 23 approved an additional $10,000 for the efforts of the Complete Count committee, bringing the total allocated to $89,816. City manager Jim Starbird said the effort will return much more in grant funding over the next ten years.

The Complete Count committee is using public outreach and advertising to market the census, with information hotlines in English, Armenian, Spanish and Korean.

  glendale, montrose